In a history of the skid rows in American cities from the late 19th century until the urban renewal era of the 1960s, Ella Howard tells of the impoverished people who inhabited them and the policy choices that supported their existence.

A recent conference hosted by the American Institute of Architects in Los Angeles shined a light on efforts to reduce homelessness in Los Angeles—and demonstrated just how much work must be done nationwide to solve this humanitarian crisis.

Paul Crawford

Paul Crawford has over 30 years of experience in city and regional planning. Before forming CMCA, he served from 1980 to 1990 as Director of Planning and Building for San Luis Obispo County and Executive Director of the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments. Those positions followed five years of service to San Luis Obispo County in four other staff assignments, prior consulting work, and a staff position with the City of Visalia.

A nationally recognized zoning expert, his professional research interests are in identifying the key features of livable, pedestrian-oriented communities, the drafting of zoning and land use regulations incorporating those features. Paul has been a frequent writer and speaker on those issues, and is one of the founding members of the Form-Based Codes Alliance.

He was elected to the California Planning Roundtable in 1993, and served as its president in 2000. He is a graduate of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, where he has served as adjunct professor in the City and Regional Planning Department since 1980. He is a member of the American Planning Association (APA), American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP), and Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU). Paul currently serves as the co-chair of the Planners Task Force for CNU.

Paul received the Award of Excellence for Distinguished Leadership as a Planning Professional from the California Chapter of the American Planning Association in September 1998. He was elected to the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Certified Planners in March 2001.

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